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May 14, 2026 – Defence Stories<\/p>\n
Estimated read time: 1:41<\/p>\n
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Canadian Armed Forces members pose for a group photo at Camp Aguinaldo, Philippines, during Exercise BALIKATAN 41-26 on 8 May, 2026<\/p>\n
Photo Credit: Corporal Alexander Ward, Imagery Technician, Canadian Armed Forces Combat Camera<\/p>\n
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) have concluded their inaugural active participation in Exercise BALIKATAN 41-26 (meaning \u201cshoulder-to-shoulder\u201d in Tagalog), a major multinational exercise conducted in the Philippines from April 20 to May 8. Moving beyond its previous observer role, Canada trained shoulder to shoulder with allies and partners from Australia, France, Japan, the Philippines, New Zealand, & the United States, marking a significant milestone in the implementation of Canada\u2019s Indo Pacific Strategy.<\/p>\n
Led by the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the United States military, the 41st iteration of Exercise BALIKATAN brought together over 17,000 personnel to strengthen interoperability. CAF participation fell under Operation HORIZON, Canada\u2019s ongoing military operation supporting peace and stability in the Indo Pacific region.<\/p>\n
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Canadian Armed Forces members of 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia\u2019s Canadian Light Infantry (3 PPCLI) collaborate with the United States Marine Corps, 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment (3 MLR), learning defilade firing drills at Paredes Air Station, Philippines during Exercise BALIKATAN 41-26 on 26 April, 2026.<\/p>\n
Photo Credit: Corporal Alexander Ward, Imagery Technician, Canadian Armed Forces Combat Camera<\/p>\n
Canada\u2019s contribution reflected a multi-domain effort. HMCS Charlottetown and its embarked CH 148 Cyclone helicopter took part in multilateral maritime activities, including a lead role in anti-submarine warfare exercises and participation in a joint maritime strike in the West Philippine Sea. On land, soldiers from 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia\u2019s Light Infantry (3 PPCLI) trained in demanding jungle environments with allies and partners, culminating in a counter landing live fire exercise on the beaches of northern Luzon province.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis experience highlighted what the Royal Canadian Navy does best \u2013 working with allies and partners to deliver meaningful maritime impact,\u201d said Commander Jonathan Maurice, Commanding Officer of HMCS Charlottetown.\u00a0<\/p>\n
CAF personnel from Canadian Special Operations Forces Command, Canadian Forces Intelligence Command, Canadian Forces Cyber Command, the Canadian Forces Health Services Group, and the Canadian Forces Military Police Group also played key roles throughout the exercise, contributing to cyber, intelligence, information operations, joint targeting, medical support, and force protection activities.<\/p>\n
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A CH-148 Cyclone Helicopter from HMCS CHARLOTTETOWN and a H-60 Sea Hawk Helicopter from JS IKAZUCHI conduct cross deck training during Exercise BALIKATAN 41-26 on 27 April, 2026.<\/p>\n
Photo Credit: MS Alexandre Heagle Canadian Armed Forces Imagery Technician<\/p>\n
\u201cCanada\u2019s active participation sends a clear signal of our long term commitment to the Indo Pacific,\u201d said Lieutenant-Commander Craig Cook, Task Force Commander, \u201cThe relationships built and the interoperability gained during Exercise BALIKATAN 41-26 directly enhance our ability to operate with our partners and allies when it matters most.\u201d<\/p>\n
CAF logisticians and planners worked to synchronize personnel movements, equipment delivery, sustainment, and host nation coordination across multiple locations in the Philippines, forming the backbone of Canada\u2019s success on this mission.<\/p>\n
As Exercise BALIKATAN 41 26 concludes, Canada\u2019s first active role leaves a lasting mark\u2014strengthening partnerships and alliances, and reaffirming the CAF\u2019s enduring commitment to stability in the Indo Pacific.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"May 14, 2026 – Defence Stories Estimated read time: 1:41 Caption Canadian Armed Forces members pose for a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":46150,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[17,20473,20474,20469],"class_list":["post-46149","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-canada","tag-canadian-joint-operations-command","tag-cjoc","tag-operations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46149","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46149"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46149\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46150"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46149"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46149"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}